Marie

[Czarina]

A blend of sinuous violet and elegant tea rose: the chosen scent of France's Demigoddess of Debauch: Marie Antoinette.

In the imp: sweet generic floral (sorry! I have trouble picking out scents in imps!)
Wet: rose. Not full-blown roses but soft white rosebuds. Hm. And green leaves.
Drydown: the violet rises up. This is a very nice mix of rose and violet. There is a faintly acidic scent to this underneath the sweetness. It almost makes it smell like sweet tarts.

As time goes by the violet seems to obtain an edge.

Good throw. Average wearlength.

[catrinella]

Imp: Clean wet greenery. Oddly, it's not floral at all to my nose. More ferns than flowers.

 

Wet: The tea rose is strong, although there's definitely violet in it. More muted than, say, Nocturne, but the violet and rose notes are obvious now.

 

Drydown: Interesting - I know there's violet and rose here, but it's blended to the point where I can't pick one over the other. Clean floral, almost saucy, but not overwhelming.

 

1 hour: Much softer, but still the clean violet/rose blend. It's incredibly feminine, as expected.

 

3 hours: Very, very faint violet.

 

Verdict: It's less knock-you-on-the-head violet than Nocturne, but it's a bit girly for me. I'll use the imp but not search for more.

[hkhm]

imp: yup, violet and rose.

 

wet: even without going soapy this smells like guest soap on me (it is turning soapy though). i like the violet in the background but the rose is just too soapy and overpowering to make this smell nice on me. too bad.

 

dry: not as bad once dry, the violet is a bit stronger but the rose... alas, will i never find a rose scent to suit me?!

[laforetnoire]

When I first opened the bottle, it immediately made me though of a bouquet of flowers (not only roses). I imagined a whole flower garden in a green house in the middle of summer.

 

When applied, the scent of roses became very strong and when drying the roses started to faint, leaving only the scent of violets.

 

Once dry, it was smelling like violets, but not simple violets: violets candy! A bag full of them!

[CrazyPretzel]

Yes, it is exactly as described: at first it's sweet, elegant tea rose, and as it dries the violets become quite thick and heady.

[binaryfaerie]

I'll be honest, Marie smelled quite odd to me in the bottle. Not floral at all, just something unpleasant. I almost didn't want to try it on, but I knew it would be much different when I actually put it on, plus I love rose and violet. On me, that's exactly what it is: a well blended combination of rose and violet, neither scent overpowering the other. I love it! The only down side is I had to reapply after a few hours, so I'll have to carry this one around with me when I'm wearing it.

[Juushika]

With select exceptions, I care little for floral, so I didn't expect to like this very much. However, I'm fond of violet and my boyfriend is fond of rose, so I was willing to give it a go.

 

In the vial: Nondescript florals. Granted, I have little experience with florals and so I'm no good at picking them out, but I still can't differentiate violet from rose in the vial. The scent is definitely floral, but not overly complex or cloying. There's a slight sharpness to it, but it's not unpleasant.

 

On me: The scent doesn't change much on my skin but, pardoning the pun, the fragrance does blossom and so develop into fullness. The same mixed floral is there, but I can pick out the rose, which begins as cloying and then goes sharp and almost bitter—as rose always is on my skin, or at least has been so far. I find it harder to pick out the violet, but it rounds out the scent to a well-blended, simple floral and is a little sweet against the sharp rose. Although I have an easier time picking out the rose, it's not predominant: the scent is evenly balanced between the two flowers. There's an odd touch of what seems like lavender and might be the greenery from the rose, something sharp, dry, and almost herbal.

 

Verdict: I don't find Marie unpleasant, but I don't particularly like it either. The rose is sharp and somewhat harsh on my skin, and the violet is too sweet. The blend isn't artificial, but it does lack a certain depth and character: it's a rounded pair of florals, a little sweet and a little bitter, unassuming, and somewhat simple. I also just plain don't care for straight florals, so this isn't the scent for me. I wouldn't recommend this as a floral for people like me who usually avoid them, but floral lovers will probably have better luck with it.

[alianthe]

In the imp: Light, floaty, very tea-rosey floral.

 

Drydown: Powdery. Himself said "it smells like a daycare center I used to go to." To me... it's a light, pretty, powdery floral, edging towards slightly bitter. Definitely getting some of the "debauche" here. No throw. Disappears in about 30 minutes flat. To be honest, since it shares a name with a woman who stalked me (in the scary, creepy way, not the SW way) as a child, I'm actually relieved not to have fallen in love with.

 

Conclusions: A pretty floral. Not really my thing, but glad I got to sniff it.

[fairnymph]

In the bottle: Rose!

 

Wet: Rose, with a hint of violet. Fresh.

 

Dry: The rose softens a little, but it's still delicious and fresh, and the violet is so very light. This doesn't go to powder or soap on me at all. No old lady!

 

Summary: I would have never thought I'd like this (it was a frimp), but this is one of the nicer BPAL rose scents I've tried. Feminine and classic.

[lameir]

The one word I keep wanting to use to describe Marie is "screeching." It's a cool, piercing floral, very bright, so intense it makes my eyes water. Not innocent, but not sexy either; certainly not friendly. After a few minutes on my skin, the rose goes soapy. I'm beginning to get a headache from it as well. Massive throw, and it doesn't want to go away even after I've scrubbed with soap and water. Yikes. Definitely not for me.

[Kippy]

Violets and roses, roses and violets.

 

That's all there really is to say about the scent. As an aside, it tastes pretty good. I have a bad habit of biting my fingers when I'm pensive (not nipping, my fingernails are great, thank you) and I kept tasting it all day long after it had faded. Candied violets and rose petals. Took me right back to my grandmother's tea cakes.

[alexandra]

In the imp: roses past their best. Something a bit off in there.

 

Wet: The something odd lingers briefly on the skin then vanishes leaving Grandmama Rose. And then a tube of Parma Violets pops forwards. And then the tea rose is back.

 

Dry: Sweet, entwined florals with rose just edging out on top.

 

And?...: It's okay, but a bit brash and embarrassing, like a young girl going out in her mother's make-up, blue eyeshadow up to her eyebrows and salmon-pink lipstick on her teeth. I much prefer The Atrocious Attic for rose and violets yoked together.

[savage_rose]

All I can smell is that "shrill rose" note, not to be confused with the other roses that love me. I don't smell the violet all--usually a good thing, but in this case, it would be nice for something to keep that rose in check. Sigh.

[sparkybish]

If Marie Antoinette smelled like this...well I would have done anything for her. This is lovely. I might even buy an extra bottle to make into a perfume spray for my MIL. She likes rose scents, but this one is so much better!!

[isisonearth]

In the imp it is all candied violet to me.

 

On my skin the tea rose is overwhelming at first and then the gorgeous violet peeks out. I think I like it but a bit too sweet for me at this stage.

 

Not very long lasting on me. Within minutes all that is left is a pale whisper of violet.

 

This scent reminds me of a fancy pink bon bon topped with a candied violet. Gorgeous, girly and gone in one bite.

 

I wanted to want a bottle of my namesake but alas I don't have a strong attachment.

[Tilby]

Tea rose usually is terrible on me, but I quite like this! Exactly what I would imagine Marie Antoinette would wear. I am not sure I want a whole bottle, but it is definitely an imp keeper. It's very soft and delicate, feminine and sweet.

[mgrazulis]

In the imp: sweet florals, violets and roses

 

Wet: soft true tea rose. The violet is nicely tucked down under.

 

Dry: Still tea rose. No powder at all. The violet is still underneath

 

After a while: This begins to waft mostly tea rose, nothing to cloy. The rose is very crisp and strong. The violet is barely discernible. Together the tea rose and violet are a wonderful bouquet, strong and very feminine . I was hoping for more violet or at least an equal pairing of the rose and violet. On me the rose tends to amp up.

 

Still a wonderfully created scent. I get more of the Sofia Coppola version of Marie--a bit more misunderstood. A bride at 15 ...lonely and surrounded by a world that knows how to use you, but not to value and understand you.

[Iceblink]

Straight-up tea rose. I love tea rose so that was ok with me. This had very little staying power and throw, though. Very delicate and pretty while it lasts.

[vikitty]

A beautiful tea rose, with little violet. I have other rose blends that I reach for more often, though.

[gingiemay]

Wet in imp - Urgh, violets and roses. Two scents that just don't agree with me. I can't even bear to put this on me (this was a frimp, so that's how I ended up with it). It's just not me. If you like violets and/or roses, though, this is totally your scent!

[ianastar]

The violet was sharp and crisp at first, but this died down to a lighter floral. It almost came across as a bunch of white florals on me. Like a bride's bouqet.

[Clementine]

I put on a ~two-year-old imp of Marie tonight and was pleasantly surprised. It has aged well!

 

The description is apt: Marie is a wonderful mix of tea rose and violet. It is sweet, soft, and uber-feminine.

 

I am continually pleased by BPAL's florals (I never really cared for florals prior to BPAL), and this is no exception.

[vegasblueblood]

What I find fascinating and very, very cool about this blend is that it is based on a perfume Marie A herself actually wore. She is one of my favorite women in history and history certainly has not been kind to her. This blend is elegant and refined yet soft and feminine as I imagine Marie herself was. It has a bit of a bite--again, just like I would imagine that she had. It is a deep rich tea rose enrobed by a regal violet that starts off somewhat sharp but then the two mellow together in a very womanly scent.

[cymbeline]

Swap test!

 

Smell alike: Violet indeed

 

Color impression: flirtatious violet

 

On me: A pleasant violet blend. Not me all all but it do get the *old lady* accents some violet perfume bears: this Marie stays nicely young, (not so-) innocent and sweet

 

Wearing: For me, it’s a girly scent and would do wonders on little ones! But I guess violet makes a smart evening scent too

 

Note: excellent staying power (even washed a long time ago, I still smell it )

[VioletChaos]

in the imp: yep, that's violet and rose, alright! the violet is a bit heavier than the rose at this point, though.

 

wet on skin: the violet is becoming very strong now- i can barely detect the rose.

 

dry down: the balance has come back some, and it's a lovely mix of to classically used scented flowers.

 

in all: violet and rose are the only two florals i can more than stand- i love them both. if you adore the CD combination of Faith and Hope, especially together, then this blend might be a very good GC alternate for you. i think i will see how the imp ages and if it continues to blend as i think it will, a 5mL bottle may very well be in order.